Boardwalk at Seaside Heights: Gettin my Swell on Bro

Om Nomz Hero Note to Self: I do not fist pump. Ever.

I grew up, went to school and college in New Jersey. I know what a jug handle is, someone else always pumps my gas and I love my pork roll. However as I child, I was deprived of vacations and trips down to the Jersey Shore. My Mom hates the beach and is a plays the Asian women stereotype of avoiding the sun. I joke with her that she would love to rock a burqa because covered head to toe, the sun is not going to come in contact with your skin and she laughs, but she is secretly entertaining the idea. Anyways, trips down to the Jersey Shore never really happened for me until High School, which was the first time I went down to the shore during prom weekend specifically Seaside Heights and Park. Granted, it was raining and dreary the whole weekend, but I realized what I was missing all these years and that the boardwalk and the beach is a quintessential summertime experience. 

Unfortunately, thanks to MTV the Jersey Shore, especially Seaside Heights has left a bad taste in Jerseyians mouths, the taste of Red Bull and vodka to be exact. It has in the past few years been invaded by overly tanned, Ed Hardy/Juicy wearing 20 something year olds fueled by HGH and Jello shots. Such shows as the Jersey Shore are not only an embarrassment to all residents of New Jersey, but the United States. I cannot tell you the second I mention I am from New Jersey when I am travelling anywhere; I am asked if such people as those seen on the Jersey Shore exist. They ask the question in the same intonation as if they were asking me if I had seen some lost tribe in New Guinea and if they really do eat people. Despite the negatives that surround the Jersey Shore, every summer, I have always been down to the Jersey Shore for day trips (I mean, during the night, it is like Guido central, it’s like I am Legend) and it is always a fun time and plus you cannot beat the fair and boardwalk like food. Sure I love eating bone marrow marmalades and sweetbreads but sometimes you cannot beat a soft served custard cone with the cool salty breeze coming in from the Atlantic. Couple Quick Reps and onto the food after the Jump!

Sprinkles Cupcakes: West Coast Cupcakes in NYC

Om Nomz Hero Note to Self: I am over Red Velvet anything; it’s a red Cocoa cake people!

Wow, so uhh sprinkles huh?

Recently Papaya Dog opened its first outpost all the way out in Los Angeles. Interesting enough, Sprinkles Cupcakes, a West coast establishment, opened their first New York outpost at the same time. Coincidence? Yes, but interesting. Sprinkles Cupcakes originate from San Francisco and have been slowly opening locations all over California, DC, Chicago, Dallas and has finally made its way here. To say that cupcakes are popular in New York is an understatement. I was in a bodega and they had cupcakes. I never had the combination of Modelo and cupcakes but I guess it could work. Besides a Crumbs bakery located every 5 blocks, there are numerous other cupcake shops all around the city. So for a newcomer to come in and start solely doing cupcakes, it is going to be a challenge.

Sprinkles is located in a somewhat odd location by the Bloomingdales on the Upper East Side. The food options in that area is bare and upon walking in, it seemed like their target clientele was those that shop at Bloomingdales. It was filled with adolescent teens with their parents credit cards dressed vicariously making me feel creepy, 30-something women that most likely had sugar daddies and weird trendy dressed people with thick black glasses. Sprinkle in (haha get it?) the cheery, colors and poppy music I felt very out of place.  

 The place is small and only seems bigger because it is high but cupcakes is pretty much a grab and go kind of deal so I guess it works out for them. I was suspicious of Sprinkles because the place looks too clean and sterile. Most of the cupcake places that I enjoy such as Sugar Sweet, Sweet Revenge, Babycakes there is a transparency in which there is evidence that baking does go on there. Not necessarily a pre-requisite for having good cupcakes, but I Sprinkles goes for the very sterile look here. It does not seem like a bakery, it feels more like I am at a Sharper Image or an Apple Store. The Cupcakes are lined up in neat uniform rows, each with its own little holder. Sprinkles has worked out an efficient system in which one of their overly happy counterperson take your order and your name and while they get it ready for you, announces your name and rings you up so by the time you are done paying, your cupcake order is good to go. Oh and just a for your information, nothing makes you look like a bigger tough guy than a person shouting, “Cupcakes for Joe!” 

They have seasonal cupcakes and rotate flavors throughout the week. I decided to go with four cupcakes; I went with the strawberry, the key lime, the black and white and just for giggles, red velvet. First thing I notice about the cupcakes in that they are insanely uniform and each have this weird, sugary, fondant token button on top. Here is a tip, do not eat it. It tastes like stale Grandma Candy left out to dry and taste like…well a button. The cupcakes look like play food, the plastic food that you give to ages 5 and up to play within their Playtime Kitchen. Cupcakes after the jump!

Black and White- thankfully no weird token on top

Aside appearance the cupcakes are good. The ratio of frosting to cake is perfect. The frosting is an American buttercream which is sweeter than and not as smooth as meringue or French buttercreams. Since the ratio between cake and frosting is perfect, the buttercream balanced and works well with the cake. The first one I tried was the black and white cupcake, which was thankfully lacking the colorful token looking thing. The cake was moist and springy and was the right amount of sweetness. The next ones were the fruity cupcakes, the key lime and the strawberry. Of the two, the key lime had a nice tartness to it and balanced the sweetness of the cupcake. 

Strawberry- sadly does not taste like Snozberry

Key Lime

The Strawberry was fine, but was heavy on that artificial strawberry flavor which is a bit of a turn off for me. Lastly, I had the red velvet cupcake, which I used as a guess a control, attempting to use it as an assessment and comparison to other cupcake shops. The cake was fine and they used a regular vanilla buttercream topping. Red velvet cake, at least I feel needs to come with a cream cheese frosting or it is just a stained Cocoa cake. Wait…that is what red velvet is actually. 

Red Velvet

Sprinkles sets itself apart in which that they are eerily consistent. The cakes are moist and the frosting is slathered on uniformly. The cupcakes in the shop are lined up and stacked neater than a Prussian Army. Regardless of the stamped out likeness of the cupcakes they are good cupcakes and worth stopping by and getting a cupcake that rivals other cupcake shops in New York…hell it is better than Crumbs. 

Sprinkles NYC
780 Lexington Avenue
New York, NY 10065
http://www.sprinkles.com/

Overnight Yeasted Waffles and Buttered Maple Syrup

Om Nomz Hero Note to Self: I want a Mickey Mouse Waffle Iron

The week is hectic and with working out, writing, working and gorging myself on food by the time Sunday rolls around, I am done. My Sunday morning routine is usual, I go for a light jog and workout and I get on going making a simple breakfast. One of my favorites is Waffles is that is designed with wells that hold and soak in awesome syrup. I went through a lot of waffle recipes, ranging from the basic buttermilk waffles to the failed recipes such as a cornmeal waffle. However, the one waffle recipe that has always stood out and that I consistently make time and time again, is from Mark Bittman’s How to Cook Everything. First off, bold statement and second, the recipe stands out to me because of its lightness and for the fact is it also a yeasted waffle. The yeasted batter has that hint of tanginess to it that you find in a buttermilk waffle but the texture of Bittman’s overnight waffle is outstanding. Light, crisp and moist makes you appreciate and give a slight nod to the Belgians for making such a tasty treat. Although prior planning the night before is required, it is a simple recipe and is finished off quickly the next morning. Waffles are designed to be topped and sure you can go just butter or powdered sugar, but you might as well indulge yourself and either slather it with Speculoos (Gingerbread-like spread, think of it as peanut butter’s hot cousin that is nut free) spread, a nice compote or go for the quick extra step and create the Clinton Street Bakery inspired maple butter syrup. I am unsure how they make it, so I took a SWAG (Scientific Wild Ass Guess) a quick tweek and this is what I came up with. Although it is not fat-free by any means, it is Sunday, enjoy yourself before going back to work on Monday half asleep. At least it is…uhh nitrate free?

 Recipes After the Jump!

Amorino Gelato: wait...they are French?

Om Nomz Hero Note to Self: Puttis freak me out

I have a feeling this is going to be a hot summer, given the rate that new ice cream and gelato places have been opening up in New York. One of the newest places to open up is Amorino gelato on University. Amorino is an French (yes this threw me off) gelato chain making their first United States debut in New York. I guess if the United States can export Mickey Ds and the Colonel’s chicken, Italy has to fight back and export gelato chains. Gelato places are sprouting up like Baskin Robbins and actually…there are probably more gelato places in the city than Baskin Robbins, someone should research that, not me of course, because I am too busy eating frozen confections. Amorino sets itself apart in which they allow you to have as many flavors as you want. No matter what size cone, cup you get you can get as many flavors as you please so for those indecisive people and abuse the ice cream sampling, this is going to be your downfall. 

Amorino spacious with a good amount of seats and has a coffee house vibe going on. For those “writers” out there that work on their “novels” in coffee shops, this could be a summer “office” space change for you. The only downside I personally see to Amorino is the décor which has the Romanticized Tuscany/Roma décor to it and a step above the Olive Garden. It has the aged looking marble and puttis everywhere. Puttis are those naked little baby cupid looking “things” prominent in Renaissance/Baroque art. Every time I see them, I cringle and shudder, I know they are suppose to be like little angel dudes, but they creep me out. However, I ignored my weird fear of puttis and forged through. 

After paying, you give your receipt to one of the…wait is there a name for the gelato people scoopers? I feel there is a cool name for them, if anyone knows let me know. Anyways, I opted for a medium cup and I decided to only go for 4 flavors. Sure by theory I could have gone with a scoop of each but I was not in a mean mood and there is a point of diminishing returns if you load up on too many flavors. I think the 4 range was a good balance for the medium and if you go larger, 6 flavors should be where you limit yourself.  Amorino has a vast array of flavors and had the most selections of chocolate gelatos. I went for the salted caramel, the pistachios, amoretto and speculoos which are one of the most awesome flavors/treats that people need to be made aware of. Speculoos is a gingerbread-like spiced shortbread cookie originating from the Netherlands and are a delectable treat. Amorino is also known for; according to their website is making petals with your ice cream so that your cone or cup looks like a budding rose. As you can see from the picture, although the gelato is a bit neater in presentation, it does not look like a budding flower of any sort maybe I needed to get it in a cone or I got a gelato scooper person that was still learning? However, I was more interested in how the gelato tasted rather than if it looked like a flower. 

Does not look like a flower...but it is tasty

Overall, the gelato at Amorino was the creamiest gelato I have ate by far. Although it was creamy, the flavors were still distinct and clean. The salted caramel had right sugary depth, but I did not really have the saltiness I was looking for. The pistachio flavors were subtle and I would have liked a bit more of the nuttiness to come through. The Amoretto was packed with almond goodness but I personally thought it was a bit too sweet. The Speculoos though lived up to the expectations and tasted like speculoos spread (love peanut butter but speculoos spread is in another league). Sprinkled with bits of speculoos cookie, the gelato had a hint of ginger to it and the warm speculoos spices and tasted exactly like speculoos. Despite the décor and the lack of flowering gelato, Amorino is a solid competitor with its multiple gelato flavors. I heard that their ice cream sandwich with brioche is quiet good and served warm, bread and gelato, two of my favorite things together? Of course I will be back!

Amorino
 60 University Pl.
New York, NY 10003
http://www.amorino.com/en/